ESPN Documentary 'Wishbone' Highlights Oklahoma's Football DNA

How college football evolved in the Barry Switzer era following Texas' innovation of the groundbreaking offensive formation will be examined as part of SEC Network's ongoing "Storied" series.

OU football head coach Barry Switzer talks to his team on the first day of spring practice on April 3, 1979, at Owen Field in Norman. | DOUG HOKE/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

By ESPN PR

As the college football season looms on the horizon, SEC fans can delve into the remarkable story of how the triple-option offense rescued three of college football's biggest brand names—Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama—and fundamentally altered the sport's history. The film – SEC Storied: “Wishbone” – directed by Chip Rives, debuts Thursday, July 17 at 7 p.m. ET on SEC Network.

“When we first started the journey of Wishbone, I thought I knew it all, well most of it at least,” said Rives. “I grew up in Texas, have lived in Oklahoma and through sports osmosis, knew a great deal about Bear Bryant and Alabama. Turns out I knew very little about the Wishbone!”

It's a tale of desperation, rivalry and friendship, and it vibrates with irony and intrigue.

In 1968, after three straight four-loss seasons, Texas head coach Darrell Royal was just desperate enough to gamble on something unproven and risky: the bold scheme invented by his offensive coordinator, Emory Bellard. Soon, the Longhorns became virtually unstoppable, winning 30 straight games and two national championships.

What happened next is the stuff of college football lore.

First Royal, a former Oklahoma quarterback, came to the rescue of his slumping alma mater, undeterred by the reality that OU is Texas' archrival. He allowed Bellard to help counterpart Barry Switzer implement the new scheme. Unable to fathom that, especially after Switzer moved up to head coach in 1973, the Sooners would exploit the offense to power a dominant new era and eclipse the Longhorns.

Then in 1971, Royal aided his close friend, Alabama's Paul "Bear" Bryant, who was searching for a winning formula after consecutive five-loss seasons had the vultures circling in Tuscaloosa. The clandestine switch, unveiled in a 17-10 upset of Southern Cal, saved Bryant's legend and became the catalyst to the winningest decade in college history up to that point.

“The Wishbone was a strategy of last resort for three of the greatest programs in college football history,” said Executive Producer Keith Dunnavant. “So, in that sense, you can feel the desperation pulsating through our story. It’s interesting to wonder what might have happened at Texas, Oklahoma and Alabama without Emory Bellard’s history-bending invention.”

The film, which follows the triple-option story to Texas A&M and Mississippi State, features interviews with Switzer, Super Bowl-winning coach Bruce Arians, players including Ted Koy, Brian Bosworth, Spencer Tillman and Major Ogilvie, and several journalists and historians who put the offensive revolution in context.